Black Cherries

Once, when i had gone to a nursery to purchase some plants, i noticed a small plant with one small red fruit. I asked the person there what plant that was. He said, “Cherry”. Nurseries, for attracting buyers, make even small plants to bear fruits by using some hormones. I became happy that i would now have an exotic fruit-bearing plant and purchased it. I brought it home and planted it in my garden. It was 3 or 4 years ago. I do not remember whether i had tasted the solitary fruit which came with the sapling and how it tasted.

Last year, when the sapling had grown to the size of a small bush with thorny branches, a few flowers bloomed on it which bore a couple of small fruits of the size of cherries.

Now, the bush has grown to a height of over 4 feet. A month ago, tiny white flowers bloomed on it. The flowers turned into small whitish fruits. I kept a close watch on the plant and recorded the progress. Gradually, the whitish fruits turned red. I was happy that i was now the owner of the plant bearing red and sweet cherries. However, the fruits were still somewhat hard and not soft like the cherries we purchase from the market.

The Flowers

The Raw White Berries

Cherry?

I waited for the fruits to ripen and be soft. The fruits did ripen and did become soft but their colour became black like black berries. These are a little smaller than black berries.

I was intrigued. What fruit is this? I plucked some, brought home and asked the wife to taste ‘black cherries’. She flatly refused to do so. Then i washed them and tasted one.

The fruits are sour! 

I checked from Google and learnt there are different varieties of cherries- red, yellow, sweet and sour. The fruits in my garden have rather thick skins: the pulp inside is sour like tamarind and have small flat seeds inside.     

Black Cherries?

Is it cherry? I have christened the plant ‘black cherry’.

Can you help me in identifying this plant?